Americans love all kinds of Asian noodles

Americans getting tangled up by the bowl full

Cold noodles as seen in San Francisco, California, on August 21, 2013.

Cold noodles as seen in San Francisco, California, on August 21, 2013.

Earlier this summer, I visited the wheat farm in eastern Oregon that's been in my grandfather's family since the late 1800s. As we drove out to the family's acreage outside Pendleton in 100-degree heat, the moonscape-like fields were a monotone of beige tufts. A week later, the wheat would be harvested, milled and put onto a barge on the Columbia River to head to the Pacific.

What's different in the 21st century is that my relatives' wheat goes straight to Asia, most likely into noodles. Meanwhile, back here in the United States, we are slurping up Asian noodles whenever we can.

We love them dunked in broth for soups, and thrown into hot woks to tangle with charred vegetables and meats. And as we approach what accounts for real summer in much of the Bay Area, we love them cold.

You see examples of cold noodles in all kinds of Asian cuisines, not all of them made of wheat.

In Korea, diners enjoy naeng myun, buckwheat noodles topped with thin strips of meat, vegetables and a slurpable broth dotted with chunks of ice to keep it extra cold. Diving in with your chopsticks brings to mind ships traversing the icy waters of the Arctic Circle.

A dip in the sauce

Many of us order Japanese buckwheat noodles in restaurants, where they are served cold with a dashi-based dipping sauce. Zaru soba is an easy dish to make at home, especially when you follow cooking teacher Sonoko Sakai's recipe, first brewing a dashi broth and then seasoning it with mirin and soy.

When you are ready to serve, pour the sauce into individual bowls so each person can season to taste with grated daikon, wasabi, sesame seeds or shichimi pepper. Boil the noodles, drain them, ice them down and then drain again - Sakai says to do this at the last minute lest the noodles go sticky and limp. Distribute the noodles to plates so that each guest can dip a chopstick full of noodles into the savory broth.

In Southeast Asia, most noodles are made of rice flour and range in width from thin vermicelli for cold Vietnamese noodle bowls, to linguine-like noodles for pho, to flatter versions that are delicious in stir-fries.

Bun noodle bowls

Bun Mee, a Vietnamese sandwich shop in Pacific Heights, offers a small selection of bun noodle bowls. Tossed with shredded lettuce, cucumbers, pickled vegetables and herbs, the cool rice vermicelli become a salad base for hot grilled shrimp. It's served with nuoc cham, the Vietnamese dipping sauce composed of fish sauce, vinegar, lime juice and sugar, to douse it all in.

To make the dish at home, cook and chill the noodles in advance, make the pickled vegetables and nuoc cham ahead, then grill the shrimp to order.

Cold dan dan

San Francisco's M.Y. China is known for its hand-pulled wheat noodles, which cooks twirl and stretch in front of rapt diners at the Westfield Centre restaurant. But its cold dan dan, made with thin dried wheat noodles tossed in chile-garlic sauce and topped with ground seasoned pork and shredded vegetables, are just as memorable.

Unlike the hand-pulled noodles, it's a dish that's easy to replicate at home, at least after a trip to an Asian market for a few key ingredients. And, as I sit down to a bowl of dan dan, I can't help but wonder if some of the wheat in my noodles might have originated on a little farm in Oregon.

Spicy Peanut Noodles With Fresh Coriander Leaves

Serves 4 to 6

This recipe is adapted from "Everyday Thai Cooking," by Katie Chin (Tuttle Publishing, 2013). Though you can serve this dish warm right after making it, we like it at room temperature. Just add more broth after it sits to loosen the sauce.

Sauce

1 tablespoon canola oil

2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced

1 small shallot, finely sliced

1 teaspoon minced galangal or fresh ginger

2 to 4 fresh red or green chiles, preferably Thai, deseeded and finely sliced (for more spice, leave the seeds intact on some of the peppers)

2 teaspoons Thai red curry paste

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

3/4 cup coconut milk (shake can before measuring)

3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth + 1/4 cup or more to serve

1/2 tablespoon fish sauce

-- Juice of 1 lime

1 teaspoon palm or brown sugar

-- Kosher salt and ground pepper, to taste

To finish

8 ounces dried linguini or flat pad Thai-style rice noodles

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

1/2 cup cilantro leaves + more for garnish

For the sauce: Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, shallots, galangal and chiles, and stir-fry until fragrant, about 1 minute. Reduce the heat to medium; add the red curry paste and turmeric, and cook, stirring to break up the paste, about 1 minute.

Add the peanut butter, coconut milk, chicken stock, fish sauce, lime juice and sugar. Bring to a gentle boil, stirring frequently. Remove from the heat and whisk until smooth; season to taste with salt and pepper.

To finish: Prepare the noodles according to package directions or cook in boiling water until al dente. Drain and rinse the noodles with cool water, then drain well.

In a large bowl, toss the noodles with the sesame oil; add the sauce and cilantro leaves and toss to combine.

Let cool, then toss with more broth to thin the sauce to desired consistency. Serve at room temperature with more cilantro.

Cold Soba Noodles With Dipping Sauce

Serves 4

This version of zaru soba comes from cooking teacher Sonoko Sakai of Common Grains, who advises to cook the noodles at the last minute so they don't turn limp. The homemade dashi broth that goes into the dipping sauce is easy to make but requires a trip to an Asian market for ingredients like kombu and bonito flakes. Add the optional seasonings to taste.

For the dashi broth: Using scissors, make several crosswise cuts in the surface of the kombu to help extract the flavor.

Place the kombu and water in a medium saucepan and let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes. Turn heat to medium and cook until the water almost boils. Using tongs, remove the kombu just before water boils to avoid a fishy odor.

Turn the heat to low, add bonito flakes and let simmer for a couple of minutes. Do not stir because it will cloud the dashi, which should have a light golden color. Strain through a very fine-mesh sieve or a sieve lined with cheesecloth and discard the solids. Makes 3 1/2 cups of broth, which will last in the refrigerator for 5 days.

For the dipping sauce: Place 2 cups dashi broth, the soy sauce and mirin in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Turn off heat. Add the bonito flakes and let the flakes sink to the bottom. Strain the broth and discard the bonito flakes. Let the broth cool to room temperature. Store in the refrigerator 3-4 days.

For the garnishes and noodles: Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the noodles.

Peel and grate the daikon, then pour out most of the juice so that the radish is juicy but not runny. Put it in a small bowl along with a bowl of green onions and place any other garnishes in bowls. Pour the dipping sauce into individual serving bowls.

Once you have set the table and set out the garnishes, prepare a large ice water bath. Cook the noodles in the boiling water for about 5 minutes, or according to manufacturer's directions, until al dente. Drain and rinse the noodles under cold running water. Transfer to the ice water and let chill 1-2 minutes. Drain the noodles well and serve on a flat bamboo mat or plate.

To serve: Let everyone help themselves to the soba noodles. First, put some grated radish (about 1 teaspoon) or wasabi, the green onions and any desired garnishes into the dipping sauce. Pick up about 1-2 mouthfuls of noodles with a pair of chopsticks, dunk them into the sauce and eat.

Due to the general nature of the recipe, there is no analysis.

Dan Dan Noodles

Serves 4

This recipe is adapted from M.Y. China (845 Market, Westfield Centre, Fourth Floor, San Francisco; (415) 580-3001; www.mychinasf.com). It uses thin dried noodles in a traditional sweet but potent dan dan sauce. The restaurant recommends using Shandong ramen, a style of dried Chinese wheat noodle, or use bean thread or egg-based vermicelli noodles. Specialty ingredients can be found in Asian markets.

For the sauce: Whisk together the first six ingredients in a medium bowl. Add the sugar and whisk until dissolved, then add the remaining ingredients.

For the noodles: Bring a pot of water to boil for the noodles, and prepare a large ice water bath. Cook the noodles as instructed, then drain and place in the ice water to chill. Drain well.

Place a largeskillet or wok over low heat and add enough oil to lightly coat the base of the pan. Add the pork and stir-fry until just cooked through, 4-5 minutes, crumbling it into small pieces. Transfer the pork to a plate and discard the oil in the pan.

Add more oil to lightly coat the pan again. Add the garlic, and heat until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the cooked pork and sprinkle with the Sichuan pickle, if using, along with the wine, soy sauce and dark soy sauce; cook until dry, about 3 minutes.

To serve: Distribute the noodles among four deep bowls. Add 1/4 cup sauce to each, then garnish with the pork, cucumber, carrot, onion, peanuts, cilantro, green onion and sesame seeds.

For the pickled carrots and daikon: In a small bowl, mix the hot water and sugar until the sugar dissolves. Add the vinegar.

Place the carrots and daikon in a medium bowl and toss and rub with the salt until thoroughly coated. Let sit until softened, for 5 minutes. Place in a colander and rinse, then drain again.

Return the vegetables to the bowl and pour the pickling liquid over. Let sit at least 1 hour to overnight before serving. (Vegetables can be made ahead and refrigerated 5 days if submerged in the liquid.)

For the nuoc cham: In a small bowl, stir the hot water with the sugar until the sugar dissolves. Let cool, then add the remaining ingredients. Mix well, adding more sugar, fish sauce, lime juice or water to taste. (You will have extra nuoc cham which you can keep, refrigerated, for 5 days.)

For the prawns: Combine the butter, green onions and basil in a microwave-safe bowl or saucepan. Melt the butter and season with salt and pepper.

If using bamboo skewers for the prawns, soak them in water for 30 minutes. Skewer the prawns, brush generously with the butter sauce and season on both sides with salt and pepper.

Preheat a grill to medium and grill the prawns on both sides until browned and cooked through, 2-3 minutes.

To assemble the noodle bowls: Cook the noodles according to package directions, or until cooked through. Drain, rinse well in cold water until cold, then drain again.

Distribute the romaine among deep noodle bowls, then top with the noodles, pickled vegetables, cucumbers, jalapeno slices, mint, cilantro and 6 prawns per serving. Sprinkle with the peanuts.

Serve with small bowls of nuoc cham for pouring over the noodles to taste.

Due to the general nature of the recipe, there is no analysis.

Tara Duggan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Her latest book, "Root-to-Stalk Cooking: The Art of Using the Whole Vegetable," has just been published by Ten Speed Press. E-mail: tduggan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @taraduggan